Afrobeat Pioneer, Fela Kuti Nominated for 2022 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Afrobeat Pioneer, Fela Kuti Nominated for 2022 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

By Our Correspondent

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced its 2022 nominees on Wednesday (Feb. 2), revealing the 17 acts eligible for induction into the Rock Hall’s Class of 2022.

Afrobeat pioneer and legend, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti made the list of nominees again having lost out in the 2021 inductees, making this his second nomination in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Indie auteur Beck, rock hitmaker Pat Benatar, art rocker Kate Bush, new wave oddballs Devo, new wave chart-toppers Duran Duran, hip-hop heavyweight Eminem, synth-pop duo Eurythmics, heavy metal fixtures Judas Priest, Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti, political rock outfit MC5, proto-punks New York Dolls, country legend Dolly Parton, rap-metal outfit Rage Against the Machine, R&B hitmaker Lionel Richie, pop singer-songwriter Carly Simon, alt hip-hop icons A Tribe Called Quest and pop vocal pro Dionne Warwick are all nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s Class of 2022.

Beck, Eminem, Duran Duran, Lionel Richie, A Tribe Called Quest, Carly Simon and Dolly Parton are all first-time Rock Hall nominees this year, although several of those names have certainly been eligible for decades – the Rock Hall’s rule is that an artist must have released their first commercial recording 25 years earlier than the year of the nomination. This means Eminem scored a nomination in his first year of eligibility, much like RRHOF 2021 inductee Jay-Z.

This is the sixth nomination for Detroit rockers MC5 and the fourth nom for Rage Against the Machine, perhaps the most successful rock band to follow MC5 in espousing revolutionary political action. 2022 marks the third nomination for Kate Bush, Judas Priest, New York Dolls and Devo. After appearing on the ballot last year for the first time, this is the second nomination for Dionne Warwick, Eurythmics and the late Fela Kuti. It is also Pat Benatar’s second nomination, after first appearing on the 2020 Rock Hall ballot.

While the Rock Hall inductees are decided upon by a body of more than 1,000 artists, industry members and historians, fans have the opportunity to contribute to the selection process by voting every day at vote.rockhall.com or at the museum in Cleveland. The five artists who receive the most votes of these 17 nominees will be tallied among the other ballots to ultimately decide the Class of 2022.